Geoffrey Ronald Burbidge
FRS (24 September 1925 – 26 January 2010) was an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
astronomy
Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professo ...
and theoretical
astrophysicist, most recently at the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is ...
. He was married to astrophysicist
Margaret Burbidge and was one of the authors of the influential
B2FH paper.
Early life and education
Burbidge was born in
Chipping Norton
Chipping Norton is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Banbury and north-west of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the civil parish population ...
, Oxfordshire, a small market town in the Cotswolds roughly midway between Oxford and Stratford-on-Avon, where he attended
grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
. His father, also Geoffrey Ronald Burbidge, was a builder.
He first attended the
University of Bristol
, mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'')
, established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter
, type ...
to study history, but changed to physics, receiving his degree in 1946. In 1947, he went to London and received his PhD from
University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = ...
(UCL) in 1951. While at UCL he worked with Professor H. S. W. Massey who was then head of the department of mathematics.
Career and research
With his wife Margaret Burbidge he worked at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...
, the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
, and the
University of Cambridge
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, before Margaret obtained work at the
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
, while Geoffrey worked at the
Mount Wilson Observatory and
Palomar Observatory
Palomar Observatory is an astronomical research observatory in San Diego County, California, United States, in the Palomar Mountain Range. It is owned and operated by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Research time at the observat ...
. They both obtained positions at the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is ...
, in 1962. He was the Director of
Kitt Peak National Observatory from 1978 to 1984.
He was the Editor of the ''
Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics
The ''Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics'' is an annual peer reviewed scientific journal published by Annual Reviews. The co-editors are Ewine van Dishoeck and Robert C. Kennicutt. The journal reviews scientific literature pertaining to ...
'' from 1974 to 2004.
B2FH
In collaboration with American physicist
William Fowler and British astronomer
Fred Hoyle
Sir Fred Hoyle FRS (24 June 1915 – 20 August 2001) was an English astronomer who formulated the theory of stellar nucleosynthesis and was one of the authors of the influential B2FH paper. He also held controversial stances on other sci ...
, he and his wife were co-authors of ''Synthesis of the Elements in Stars'', a fundamental paper on
stellar nucleosynthesis
Stellar nucleosynthesis is the creation (nucleosynthesis) of chemical elements by nuclear fusion reactions within stars. Stellar nucleosynthesis has occurred since the original creation of hydrogen, helium and lithium during the Big Bang. A ...
published in 1957. It is commonly referred to as the
B2FH paper after the initial letters of the four authors' surnames. The paper describes the process of stars burning lighter elements into successively heavier atoms which then are expelled to form other structures in the universe, including other stars and planets.
Alternative cosmology
In his late years, Burbidge was known mostly for his
alternative cosmology "
quasi-steady state theory", which contradicts the
Big Bang
The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
theory. According to Burbidge, the universe is
oscillatory
Oscillation is the repetitive or periodic variation, typically in time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of equilibrium) or between two or more different states. Familiar examples of oscillation include a swinging pendulum ...
and as such, expands and contracts periodically over infinite time.
Awards and honours
*
Warner Prize, with his wife (1959)
*
Fellow of the American Physical Society
The American Physical Society honors members with the designation ''Fellow'' for having made significant accomplishments to the field of physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its mot ...
(1988)
*
Bruce Medal (1999)
*
Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society, with his wife (2005)
*
NAS Award for Scientific Reviewing of the
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nat ...
(2007)
*The
Asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere. ...
11753 Geoffburbidge is named after him
Personal life
He met
Margaret Peachey and they married in 1948.
Burbidge died on 26 January 2010 in
La Jolla, California
La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781.
La Jolla is surrounded on ...
.
References
External links
Bruce Medal pageOral History interview transcript with Geoffrey Burbidge on 15 November 1974, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & ArchivesOral History interview transcript with Geoffrey Burbidge on 4 June 1975, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & ArchivesOral History interview transcript with Geoffrey Burbidge on 21 October 1977, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & ArchivesLos Angeles Times obituary- Daily Telegraph obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burbidge, Geoffrey
1925 births
2010 deaths
People from Chipping Norton
American astrophysicists
British astrophysicists
20th-century British astronomers
Alumni of the University of Bristol
Alumni of University College London
Fellows of the Royal Society
University of California, San Diego faculty
Recipients of the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society
Fellows of the American Physical Society
British expatriate academics in the United States
Annual Reviews (publisher) editors